AWB Chapter 151 New Year's Eve
Chapter 151 New Year's Eve
At this moment, the sound of firecrackers could be heard all over the street outside.
Qiao Qingshu sat at the large round table in Fushou Hall, looking at the people slowly filling the table, feeling somewhat dazed.
Amidst the hustle and bustle outside and the sounds of conversation inside, she watched as the maids and servants happily served and arranged the dishes.
The whole world is enveloped in a false sense of excitement.
She looked at the people sitting beside her: Old Madam Qiao, Qiao Jizhou, Qiao Qingqiao, Qiao Qingle, and Aunt He.
Her emotions were very complicated. She picked up her glass and drank it all in one gulp.
As the mellow liquor went down her throat, she immediately felt her body warm up.
It seemed as if power had been injected into his body.
Qiao Qingshu looked up at the window, her lips slightly pursed.
She quickly finished her meal and then went out under the pretext of watching the lanterns.
She and Granny Gui rode in a carriage to the Bamboo Forest Estate in the suburbs.
When Qiao Qingshu stepped off the carriage, she saw that the small courtyard was decorated with red festive decorations.
Red paper-cut window decorations, lanterns, and couplets filled the courtyard with the atmosphere of the Spring Festival.
Qiao Qingshu stepped inside and saw her mother, Bai Chanzi, sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed) with two young maids, eating New Year's Eve dinner.
Qiao Qingshu called out with a smile.
"mother!"
Bai Chanzi turned around and saw that it was her daughter. She happily went up and took her hand.
"Shu'er! You're here!"
When Bai Chanzi saw her daughter arrive, her eyes immediately welled up with tears.
She pulled Qiao Qingshu to sit down, and then pulled Granny Gui to sit down as well.
Qiao Qingshu wasn't very hungry when faced with a house full of food at the Qiao family's house, and only ate a few bites.
But now, sitting on the small kang (heated brick bed), there aren't many dishes on the table, and it's not very plentiful.
But Qiao Qingshu felt inexplicably hungry, so she picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of fish, and put it in her mouth.
The maid Jiu'er said with a smile,
"Young lady, you must try this fish! It was caught by the madam herself! It's the freshest and most delicious fish ever!"
Qiao Qingshu was taken aback, then pleasantly surprised.
Her mother used to live like a walking corpse in the Qiao family, never participating in any activities and showing no interest in anything.
Now they've even caught fish! That's wonderful!
Jiu'er handed over another plate of spring rolls.
"Young lady, please try this. Madam fried it herself this afternoon."
Qiao Qingshu looked at her mother with surprise and disbelief, and asked,
"Mother, did you cook?"
Bai Chanzi, though the legitimate daughter of the Duke's mansion, had never cooked since she was a young lady.
Bai Chanzi had just married into the Qiao family when Old Madam Qiao wanted to put her through the wringer by making her cook for her for a few days. However, Bai Chanzi refused, saying she couldn't stand the smell of cooking oil. Old Madam Qiao was angry about this for a long time.
Bai Chanzi, who had never cooked in her entire life, has now started cooking.
Qiao Qingshu asked incredulously,
"Why did Mother decide to cook? Wouldn't it be better to have Huan'er and Jiu'er do it?"
Bai Chanzi smiled and said...
"I think An'er will definitely come back someday. I'm thinking of learning to cook some delicious dishes for An'er when he comes back."
Qiao Qingshu understood and nodded, a part of her heart inexplicably softening.
Yes, brother.
I wonder if her brother has had his reunion dinner yet.
Today is Lunar New Year's Eve, a wonderful day for family reunions.
They will not be able to reunite with their brother this year, but they will definitely spend New Year's Eve together as a family next year.
Thinking of this, Qiao Qingshu was filled with hope and anticipation.
She held Bai's hand, her eyes also reddening.
"Mom, don't worry, next year we will definitely have a reunion dinner with my brother."
Bai Chanzi also gripped Qiao Qingshu's hand tightly and said,
"Shu'er, I believe in you. Next year, the three of us will definitely be reunited!"
After having New Year's Eve dinner with Bai Chanzi, Qiao Qingshu unloaded a whole truckload of charcoal from the car.
He instructed her mother,
“Mother, the weather will get very cold tonight, and two cartloads of charcoal and food will be delivered tomorrow morning. You should hide them away carefully so that you can get through this cold winter.”
Then he took a large package from Granny Gui's hands and handed it over.
"Mother, these are the cotton-padded coats I made for you to keep warm. Remember to wear them when it gets cold."
He then gave the two maids some more instructions.
The maids all nodded in agreement.
"Young lady, we understand. Don't worry."
After explaining the details of her mother's diet and daily life, Qiao Qingshu reluctantly left the bamboo forest.
Halfway there, Qiao Qingshu lifted the curtain and looked out. Brilliant fireworks were flashing on the horizon, which was quite mesmerizing.
She felt very calm; she knew that the coming year would be extraordinary.
She needs to conserve her energy for the fight!
By the time I got home, the temperature had already started to drop ridiculously low.
Originally, everyone was sitting around Fushou Hall, wanting to stay up all night to welcome the New Year, but soon several girls started complaining of the cold.
Madam Qiao asked someone to add two more basins of charcoal to the room.
But everyone's feet were still cold, so cold that they had to stand up and walk around the room.
But the deeper the night went, the colder everyone felt, and Qiao Jizhou's runny nose kept running from the cold.
Qingqiao and Qingle were both shivering in the cold, even though they were wearing cloaks.
Seeing that no one could stay up all night to celebrate the New Year, Qiao Qingshu told everyone to go back to their rooms and go to sleep early.
Qingqiao, Qingshu, and Aunt He were all women, and their health was already weak, so they all returned to their own courtyards to rest.
Qiao Jizhou had just recovered from a high fever a few days ago, and not daring to stay up any longer, he waved goodbye and went back to his room to rest.
Only Old Madam Qiao and Qiao Qingshu remained at Fushou Hall.
Old Mrs. Qiao was huddled in bed, covered with three quilts, and still shivering from the cold.
In contrast, Qiao Qingshu sat upright in the chair, wearing only a large silver fox fur cloak, completely wrapped up inside.
It looks incredibly luxurious, both beautiful and warm.
Madam Qiao squinted with a hint of jealousy, thinking to herself that such fine silver fox fur should be worth at least five hundred taels of silver.
That brat certainly doesn't mistreat herself; her new clothes are so well-made, even better than hers.
Old Madam Qiao felt suffocated and was about to tell them to leave.
Qiao Qingshu had already gotten up to leave, and Old Madam Qiao naturally didn't say anything to stop her, only saying that she was also tired and needed to rest.
Qiao Qingshu wrapped her cloak tighter and stepped out of Fushou Hall.
On the way back to Zhuqingxuan, Lin Dong kept chatting with Qiao Qingshu about the situation in late autumn.
"They say the servant in the front yard said Liu San went out drinking last night and hasn't come back yet. Wanqiu insisted on going to find him, and we listened to the eldest young lady and didn't stop her. Guess what happened, young lady!"
Lin Dong looked at Qiao Qingshu with excitement, but Qiao Qingshu just shook her head and pretended not to know anything.
"I don't know, please tell me."
Lin Dong continued excitedly,
"Wanqiu actually caught them in bed together! That shameless Liu! He was having sex with that prostitute in a private room at Yizui Tower, and Wanqiu, who was looking for him, caught them red-handed!"